Electric

Mich. City Updates Green Fleet Policy

February 7, 2018
• by Staff

The City of Ann Arbor (Mich.) has updated its Green Fleets Policy to promote the purchase of plug-in vehicles and incorporate best practices and lessons learned from peer municipality models, according to city documents.

In June 2017, Ann Arbor City Council voted to update the city’s Green Fleets Policy, which was first established in 2004. When first created, the policy emphasized reducing fuel use and emissions through smart usage and purchasing of vehicles to reduce fuel use by 10% by 2012, reported M Live. City council voted to incorporate plug-in electric vehicles in the policy, including the option to charge electric vehicles through solar power.

According to a memo issued by the city administrator this week, the new Green Fleets Policy emphasizes vehicle electrification opportunities as a primary alternative when deemed feasible for purchase, continued fleet evaluation for right-sizing and eliminating under-utilized vehicles, and setting a 25% greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal by 2025.

The policy also offers steps to routinely evaluate and report on progress towards the goals of the policy, the re-establishment of a Green Fleets Team made up of relevant staff from the organization, and the promotion of alternatives to vehicle travel, including minimizing unnecessary travel for meetings and the use of telematics to optimize route planning.

Trucking shouldn't waste time on pipe-dreams like platooning and autonomous trucks and instead focus on improving logistics and making the trade appeal to young people, said Hendrickson's Jeff Sass while speaking at the Heavy Duty Trucking Exchange in Phoenix.